Richard (Raptor) (Prime Earth)
Raptor (real name Richard) is a thief, outlaw and former close fiend of Mary Lloyd. Later in his life, he became a wanted thief and outlaw around the world, allying himself with KobraNightwing #4 (Volume 4) and positioned himself as a double agent within the Parliment of Owls for Kobra, being Nightwing's appointed partner within the cabal and seemingly an ally before later betraying his trust.Nightwing #7 (Volume 4) History Origin Born as a poor immigrant in Paris, Raptor grew up in the Cirque Romanes de Paris, a circus with other Romani immigrants, as a clown that entertained the tourist. However, the circus had issues with the local government whom viewed them as dirty people who were a "health hazard" to Paris. Raptor later came down with Hanson's disease, known as leprosy, and due to the poor conditions, he was unable to afford the drugs needed to cure him. His nerves were damaged and his own people turned from him. However, Mary Lloyd met Raptor and after seeing his condition, help cure Raptor of his condition by stealing the medical drugs away from the same local government who claimed they were unable to help the circus and Raptor. Feeling indebted to her, he made and oath and watched her from that point on to protect Mary as she was at odds with the authorities. Having met John Grayson, he is made aware from his spying that John doesn't approve of him due to being too intense and his eyes creeping him out as well as expressing concern over the authorities connecting Raptor and Mary to one another. However, Mary reassures him that she will ask for him to keep his distance. As he walks away, he turns around and makes eye contact with Dick. After her death, he went into deep grieving. Through his grief, he became even more enraged when he found out Dick Grayson was adopted by Bruce Wayne, an act in which he view as Bruce taking Dick away from his identity and people, raising him to be a "weapon" for Bruce to use against the poor and unfortunate, and turning him into the very thing Mary resented about those who lived a more privileged life. He then dedicated most of his time to watch both him and Dick from the shadows, stumbling upon the fact that Dick was Robin (later Nightwing) and Bruce Wayne was Batman. He later then became Raptor at some point, becoming a wanted criminal through seventeen countries in the world. Outlaw Activities Raptor's activities were noted by the Owls of Dubai as they were targeted by him. During his altercation with the Owls of Dubai, he nearly made off with millions of dollars but was caught by the cabal. Impressed with his skills, they enlist him within the Parliment to be set up as Nightwing's new mentor.Nightwing: Rebirth #1 (2016) Better than Batman Raptor is sent by the Parliment of Owls to kill Lincoln March. When he shoots him with a poison dart after listening to the speech he gives to the Parliment, he gives him an ultimatium in which he states that Lincoln's focus on what he feels deserves gets in his and the Parliments way and that they all want a easy path to Nightwing. Raptor interrupts one of the Doctor Levitcus and her associate Padurar's grave digging as they loot a box for the Parliment. Claiming to want to dig up the past, he seemingly kills the Parliment member. Later, having been assigned as Nightwing's new partner and mentor, he tracks down the vigilante and tails him. He arrives and meets Nightwing for the first time, introducing himself and reveals of him tailing Nightwing as well as claiming he possess some arrogance. When Nightwing declines his offer to be his new partner and mentor and also claimed he already had a better one, he attacks him and enters a frey with the vigilante. The fight goes in Raptor's favor as he uses the name "Barbara" to distract Nightwing and downs the vigilante, telling him he needs a new partner because everything that was taught to him by the Dark Knight himself was wrong. After the altercation, Nightwing goes on to deny his acceptance in Raptor being his partner, with Raptor assuming it's customary to fight before teaming up in the superhero community. He alerts Nightwing on the Parliment's new mission for the both of them: the Kobra Cult had taken a ship in the Black Sea belonging to a prominent member of the Parliment of Owls and they're both being sent to secure the ship from Kobra. They take Raptor's Buteo as the ride to the Black Sea. During their mission, they're attacked by Kobra. As Ratpor fends them off, he finds Nightwing having left him to find out the purpose of the ship and the value to it from the Parliment. Raptor arrives in time to save Nightwing. He tells Nightwing Kobra intended to take the refugees on the ship and use them for experimentation in their Genetic Research Division. He also tells Dick that the refugees are the ones who will be tasked with building nation free from the rules that governs the rest of the world within Greece. After the mission, both Raptor and Nightwing recieve praise from the Parliment. When Raptor catches up with Nightwing, he claims to him that he's a partner who can trust and wants to take down the Parliment of Owls with him.Nightwing #2 (2016) On their next mission to Rudd's Madhouse, home of Knute Rudd whom is a world-renown maze designer, to destroy the blueprints of Parliment Secret HQ to preserve it's secrecy, both Raptor and Nightwing encounter Batgirl. Reluctantly allowing her to aid the two undercover Parliment agents, they make their way through the madhouse, dodging traps and figuring out the puzzles and mazes. When he reaches Ruud first, he plans to decieve both the Parliment, Nightwing, and Batgirl to think he killed him to please the Parliment as they think the Bat-Family will not take kindly to Dick's apparent dismissal of their code. He later reveals his ruse. When Nightwing questions him why he simply didn't tell him, he told him that he made it up on the spot. As they leave, Raptor reaffirms his claim of Batman teaching him all wrong because he taught him to go against his instincts and he's simply finding out who he really is beneath all the layers of "Batman". Leaving to go to Raptor's base of operations, he tells Nightwing that the Parliment has a method of keeping up with their members in a secretive in an untraceable method as well as being unreadable except to a select few. The mad inventor was Dr. Leviticus, who was kidnapped by Raptor.Nightwing #3 (2016) Gaining information on how to access the contents on the Book of Wisdon from Leviticus in exchange for her safety in God's Garden provided by Nightwing, both him and Raptor arrive at Parliment Grove to celebrate their birth of the new nation. However, at Nightwing's behest, Raptor joins him in betraying the Parliment and retrieving the Book of Wisdom. Soon, they face the transformed "Moloch", formerly the Orator who assigned them mission as he tries killing them. Raptor is injured along the way, with Raptor revealing he recognized him under the name "Mr. Numb". Having temporarily escaped the Moloch, he pushes Nightwing out as he says his goodbyes, revealing to have known his mother. Escaping from the Parliment, his alligeance is revealed: to Kobra. He also revealed having Leviticus installing a backdoor so whenever Spyral uncovers names of the members of the Parliment, Kobra also learns of the names. When asked by Lady Eve of Nightwing learning of his deception, he replies that he has him wrapped around his finger.Nightwing (2016) #4 Rise of Raptor Back at his hideout, he is confronted by Nightwing when he finds out that he used him to have Kobra kill off members of the Parliment of Owls. Though Nightwing is angry, Raptor feels justified, as he look down upon them for their wealth and entitled nature. Although Nightwing engages Raptor in a fight, he deduces that Nightwing wants to know his connection to Mary Lloyd, his mother. He reveals that he has followed and catalogued Dick Grayson for much of his life. Nightwing pummels him to find out his identity, although he is able to drug him. Wanting him and Nightwing to team up again, he concludes that he must take "everything" away from Nightwing to make a partnership happen. To that end, he then kidnaps Bruce Wayne on national television.Nightwing #6 (2016) With him kidnapped, he brings him to Cirque Romanes de Paris and reveals his deep-seeded hatred for him, claiming that he took Dick Grayson away from his home and heritage for the sake of raising him in his "world of privilege" and turning him into a weapon to use against the poor and desperate. Having him tied up to a contraption, he told Bruce of how his selflessness action on television rose Wayne Tech stock prices. When the prices rises to over $200 in stock, the contraption will kill him via a stabbing from a silver spoon to illustrate his death in his own arrogance, according to Raptor. Nightwing intervenes to help Bruce, fending off Raptor. He tells Nightwing of his leprosy condition and how despite the treatment for it being free, he wasn't able to get any treatment for the condition and as a result, was shunned. Mary Lloyd, having been the one to help him in his time of need, resulted in him in being loyal and to protect her whenever he could.Nightwing #7 (2016) Nightwing turns the tables in their fight, having analyzed him enough to understand his utter love and devotion to Mary and how her death had impacted him. He then proceeds to anger Raptor more, telling him that despite his viewpoint of Bruce that he is just the same as him; possessing the same trait in which he blame himself until it became easier to blame anyone and everyone else for his perceived failure. Although Raptor claims Nightwing doesn't know him in reponse, the latter only reaffirms the fact he doesn't even know his name. Nightwing then delivers the final blows to disable and take down Raptor. He is then taken into custory by Spyral. Spyral When the Minos AI took the form of Tiger and controlled Spyral, he ends up releasing Raptor from their custody.Nightwing #28 (2016) Twilight Rise of Raptor Powers and Abilities Abilities Raptor is an extremely excellent hand-to-hand combatant. During his first altercation with Nightwing, he was able to not only hold his own with the vigilante but also overpower him in outright combat combined with the usage of the mysterious gantlet called "Suyolak" He noted, however, that he was capable of doing so because he was distracted from his comments on "Barbara". He was noted by the Parliment of possessing exception thievery skills and took effort to be caught by the Parliment. Raptor is a skilled assassin in addition, capable of sneaking up on Lincoln March and killing the man with a poison dart.Nightwing: Rebirth #1 Having suffered from leprosy, his nerves were damage and as a result, he doesn't feel pain. This gives him the capability of not feeling any pain during battle.Nightwing #8 (2016) Weaknesses Due to being fiercely devoted to the late Mary Grayson, Raptor is easily angered at the idea of his relationship with Mary undermined, particularly by her son, Dick Grayson. This causes him to lash out in blind anger at a given moment, with Dick noting it "distracts", causing his level of skill to suffer as a result. Paraphernalia *'Suyolak' (formerly): Raptor's main choice of a weapon, it is a gauntlet device in which serves a variety of purpose and stores various items and weaponry into it in which includes some kind of gas, knock out agent (in which is injected from the knuckles), and a pint of blood compatible with Raptor. It was lost to Raptor after his defeat by Nightwing, falling into Spyral's custody. *'Buteo': Raptor's choice of transportation, it is a flying vehicle capable of traveling globally. Quotes *"We took what was ours. And then went tothe Mayor's home and took whatever else we wanted. She said he owed us. She said it was justice. I wasn't one to make oaths. But I made one that day. To her. To Marie the Skydancer. Mary Lloyd. Thief. Outlaw. Your mom." -- Raptor (Nightwing #8 (2016)) Notes *No notes Trivia *No trivia References Category:Characters Category:Prime Earth Characters Category:Male Category:Parliment of Owls members Category:Kobra Cult members Category:Romani Category:Rogues Gallery Category:Prime Earth Villains Category:Thieves Category:Outlaw Category:Yellow Eyes Category:Black Hair Category:French